Emergency exit door unlatching actuator

ABSTRACT

Emergency exit doors are conventionally provided with a horizontally disposed bar which extends across the inside of a door. Such a bar is grasped and pushed towards the door which action unlatches the door and constitutes a means for opening the door as such emergency doors are hinged to move outwardly. The unlatching actuator is used to move the said bar downwardly towards the surface of the door by electric motive means without the necessity of using manually applied force. The bar is then held in an unlatched condition until the same electric motive means is utilized to permit the return of the bar to a normal position which is accomplished by the usually employed spring means associated with emergency or panic exit door unlatching assemblies.

United States Patent [191 Bauer et al.

[ 1 Mar. 27, 1973 I541 EMERGENCY EXIT DOOR UNLATCHING ACTUATOR [73] Assignee: Sargent and Company, New Haven,

Conn.

[22] Filed: Mar. 22, 1971 [21] ApplJNo; 126,455

[52] U.S. Cl ..292/92, 49/141 [51] Int. Cl ..E05c 21/00 [58] Field of Search.....292/332, 336.3, 201,144, 92, 292/93, 94, 21, DIG. 25, DIG. 18; 70/262,

Eddison ..49/340 X Rowe ..292/336.3

Primary Examiner-Richard E. Moore Attorney-Schellin & Hoffman [57] ABSTRACT Emergency exit doors are conventionally provided with a horizontally disposed bar which extends across the inside of a door. Such a bar is grasped and pushed towards the door which action unlatches the door and constitutes a means for opening the door as such emergency doors are hinged to move outwardly. The unlatching actuator is used to move the said bar downwardly towards the surface of the door by electric motive means without the necessity of using manually applied force. The bar is then held in an unlatched condition until the same electric motive means is utilized to permit the return of the bar to a normal position which is accomplished by the usually employed spring means associated with emergency or panic exit door unlatching assemblies.

7 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures Patented March 27, 1973 3,722,938

:i NH F/G.3.

INVENTOR ALFRED E. FLOYD 8: CHARLES A.BAUER jZ gKWfid/V ATTORNEYS EMERGENCY EXIT DOOR UNLATCHING ACTUATOR BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The actual bolting arrangement is extremely yaried. In

some instances, bolts are reciprocable and slidably disposed into suitable sockets in the threshold of the door or in the overhead portion of the jamb. This type of arrangement is particularly useful for double doors. This type of assembly is adequately described in US. Pat. No. 2,505,190 to Nathan Kulbersh. In another arrangement, the bolts operate into and out of suitable keepers mounted at the side portion of the jamb at a position intermediate the top and bottom of the door.

In a popular arrangement, the door may be unlatched by pushing a pivotally mounted horizontal bar in the same direction as the door opens so that the door may be unlatched and opened as a single movement follow through. The bar has, generally, U-shaped configuration and is pivotally mounted at the ends of the leg portions thereof. The apex portion of the bar extends across the door and is positioned at a convenient height so that the normal individual may push on the bar with one or both hands while bending the arm at the elbow. Usually, the pivot assembly at the hinged side is merely ajournalling arrangement.

It is on the other side that one finds actuator mechanism for unlatching the door from a locked position. Normally, the legs of the U-shaped bar are at an acute angle with respect to the surface of the door. The bar is spring urged to this normal stance. When the legs of the U-shaped bar are in a more straight downward position, the door is unlatched, It will be appreciated that a mechanism designed to retain the U-shaped bar in this condition will at the same time keep the door in a continuous unlatched condition. In practice, it has been found very desirable to have a door in this unlatched state. In such an instance, the door may be opened from the other side by providing a relatively simple handle for pulling the door open. In order to provide for such an unlatched condition, means is provided at one side or the other of the legs to hold the bar in a downward condition. The holding means may be a simple dog to prevent the swinging of the leg and therefore of the bar. The dog may be moved into position by a special tool, for instance, or by a key. However, in any event, the hold down mechanism must be manually set or defeated at each and every door.

Doors having unlatching arrangements of the type mentioned in the above are usually employed in public buildings such as schools, theaters and other institutions. It will be appreciated that such public buildings have a great number of doors having panic operated unlatching mechanisms. In view thereof, it is a rather time consuming task to adjust each door in panic unlatching means to assume the unlatched status at, say, in the morning, and then to put it into the latched condition in the evening.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an ingenious mechanism for placing simultaneously, if desired, one

or more doors having panic latches in an unlatched conditionfrom a central location. Each door having a panic door unlatching means is equipped with an electrically operated actuator adapted to move the or dinarily manually operated bar into a position assumed when the panic door unlatching means is in the unlatched condition. Additionally, all the doors having the present invention mounted thereon are capable of being relatched into a normal stance. Desirably, the mechanism of the present invention does not interfere in any way with the normal operation of the panic door unlatching mechanism.

DETAILED CONSIDERATION OF THE INVENTION In the following a detailed rendition of the present invention will be explored taken in conjunction with the drawings wherein like reference numerals of parts refer to like parts throughout.

FIG. 1 is a view of a door having a panic unlatching means with the device of the present invention in operative relationship therewith.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the actuating device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along lines 33 of FIG. 27

Now, turning to the drawings for a detailed consideration of the invention, reference numeral 11 depicts an exit door as seen from the inside of a building, for instance. The door 11 is hinged by hinges 12 to one side of a door jamb 13. The jamb is mounted in a suitable opening in wall 14. A panic door unlatching mechanism 15 is provided on the inside of the door. In this embodiment, the said mechanism takes the basic form of a U-shaped bar 16 which is pivotally mounted at both legs at their respective ends thereof. At the side near the hinged edge of the door, the leg 17 enters a small housing 18 in which the leg 17 terminates in conventional pivot arrangement. Spring means is located therein to urge the leg outwardly away from the door as discussed in the above. The other leg 19 enters a housing 20 in which conventional unlatching lever means is located to reciprocate slide elements 21 and 22 from their normally outwardly directed position. Here too, spring means is located to urge outwardly the bar 15. It will be seen that thus far the description presented in the above depicts well known appurtenances.

Attention is now directed to FIG. 2 taken in conjunction with FIG. 1. It will be noted that the device 31 that is part of the system of the present invention is mounted on the inside of the door 11. From FIG. 31 it will be seen that the device includes a base 32 which is secured to the door by screws 33, for example. On the base is a housing 34 which includes an electric motor 35 of the torque stall type commonly used in moving the windows of automobiles. The housing also contains a suitable transmission means 36 for driving shaft 37 which projects horizontally outwardly from one side of housing 34. A lever 38 is keyed at one end to shaft 37. The other end terminates in an end with a shoulder 33 which embraces the top of bar 16. The electric motor 35 has a line 40 to a source of electrical energy. To present a good appearance, line 40 may pass into the door for concealment and may then make egress with conduit means 42 at the door's hinged edge. It may then continue to a central station.

From FIG. 3, it will be seen that the transmission means 36 includes a driven gear 43 at the opposite end of shaft 37 to which lever 38 is keyed. The shaft 37 is provided with suitable journalling means 44 at the point of egress from housing 34. The electric motor possesses a drive shaft 45 which has a worm gear 46 keyed thereto for drive meshing arrangement with the driven gear 43. By employing a worm gear in the transmission 36, the bar 16 is prevented from driving the motor when the electricity is off even though the bar 16 is urged outwardly by the stated spring means. In other words, when the motor 35 is energized, the lever 38 is rotated so that the shoulder 39 thereof arcs towards the door 11 carrying with it the bar 16; thereby unlatching the door. When the lever has been moved to a position as far as it will go the motor will stall as required by its manufacture. When the flow of electricity is interrupted, there is a tendency for bar 16 to drive lever 38 outwardly again, but due to the use of a worm gear rotative urgings cannot be transmitted to the motor so that bar 16 remains in its position. With the application of electricity of reversed polarity, the electric motor 35 rotates the lever 38 in the opposite direction and bar 16 moves due to the stated spring means. At the conclusions of the outwardly directed drive, stop means in the housing 34 prevents the bar 16 from moving further. Again the electric motor is permitted to stall if the electricity is not interrupted after the lever has been stopped by an abutment in housing 34, for instance.

By the device of the present invention it is possible to operate into unlatching position all the emergency or panic exit doors from a central location or any desired number by arranging for suitable electric wiring. Again, the reverse may be accomplished at a suitable time, for instance, at the end of business hours.

While the instant embodiment shows the device 31 as being mounted intermediate the left housing 20 and the right housing 18, such an arrangement need not be utilized. For esthetic purposes, it will probably be desirable to enlarge housing 18 to accommodate 'device 31. In such an instance, it could be possible that lever 38 be made much smaller and unobtrusive with its action confined to upper leg portions of bar 16, that is, the leg 17 thereof, for instance. The electric wiring necessary may be also achieved unobtrusively by carrying the electricity through one or more hinges.

While there have been shown and described particular embodiments of the invention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the invention, and, therefore, it is aimed to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In an emergency exit door having an inner face and latching means movable to latching and release positions, and a manually operable horizontal bar mounted on said inner face for swinging movement relative thereto, operatively connected to said latching means and normally biased into a position in which it maintains said latching means in latching position, the improvement comprising:

a. an electric prime mover mounted on said inner face,

b. a transmission operatively connected to said prime mover, and c. a lever having one end operatively connected to said transmission for pivotal movement thereby and a portion adjacent to its other end engaging said bar to move the bar into a position in which said latching means is released or away from said bar to permit the bar to be biased into a position in which said latching means is in latching position.

2. The improvement of claim 1 wherein the prime motive means is an electric motor.

3. The improvement of claim 2 wherein the electric motor is capable of moving clockwise and counterclockwise.

4. The improvement of claim 3 wherein the electric motor is a D.C. torque stall motor.

5. The improvement of claim 1 wherein the transmission means includes member means whereby only the lever may be driven.

6. The improvement of claim 5 wherein the member means is a worm gear.

7. The improvement of claim 1 wherein the said other end of the lever overlays said portion of said bar and has shoulder means to retain said bar in a fixed release position relative to said lever. 

1. In an emergency exit door having an inner face and latching means movable to latching and release positions, and a manually operable horizontal bar mounted on said inner face for swinging movement relative thereto, operatively connected to said latching means and normally biased into a position in which it maintains said latching means in latching position, the improvement comprising: a. an electric prime mover mounted on said inner face, b. a transmission operatively connected to said prime mover, and c. a lever having one end operatively connected to said transmission for pivotal movement thereby and a portion adjacent to its other end engaging said bar to move the bar into a position in which said latching means is released or away from said bar to permit the bar to be biased into a position in which said latching means is in latching position.
 2. The improvement of claim 1 wherein the prime motive means is an electric motor.
 3. The improvement of claim 2 wherein the electric motor is capable of moving clockwise and counter-clockwise.
 4. The improvement of claim 3 wherein the electric motor is a D.C. torque stall motor.
 5. The improvemeNt of claim 1 wherein the transmission means includes member means whereby only the lever may be driven.
 6. The improvement of claim 5 wherein the member means is a worm gear.
 7. The improvement of claim 1 wherein the said other end of the lever overlays said portion of said bar and has shoulder means to retain said bar in a fixed release position relative to said lever. 